Sunad Rangarajan, MD

Professional Titles

• Associate Professor

Recognitions

• Hastings Innovation Award for Interstitial Lung Disease, American Lung Association (2025)
  This is a two-year award intended to support highly promising investigators with stellar track records of accomplishment, who have the potential to advance the field of lung disease science.
• ACCM Teaching Award, Anesthesia Critical Care Fellowship Program, CU Anschutz (2023)
  Awarded for securing the best teacher nomination by the outgoing class of fellows in the Anesthesia Critical Care Fellowship Program at CU Anschutz.
• PSCCM ICON Research Award, Division of Pulmonary Sciences and Critical Care Medicine, CU Anschutz (2022)
  Awarded for promising innovative and collaborative proposals within the Division.
• Giles F. Filley Memorial Award for Excellence in Respiratory Physiology and Medicine, American Physiological Society (2019)
  Awarded to Early Stage Investigators for excellence in Respiratory Physiology and Medicine.
• ASCI Young Physician-Scientist Award, American Society for Clinical Investigation (2019)
  Awarded to Early Career Investigators for excellence in research.
• Pulmonary Innovation Award, Division of Pulmonary Sciences and Critical Care Medicine, CU Anschutz (2018)
  Awarded to innovative research proposals within the Division.
• IMPACT Award, UAB School of Medicine (2016)
  Awarded to promising Early Career Investigators on the path to career development awards.
• Walter B. Frommeyer Fellowship in Investigative Medicine, University of Alabama Department of Medicine (2016)
  The award supports a two-year intensive, mentored research experience designed to foster the development of independent physician-scientists.
• Elio Lugaresi Award for Sleep Research, World Association of Sleep Medicine (2007)
  Scientific award for young clinical scientists for manuscript judged on the basis of scientific merit, timeliness and relevance to a worldview of the practice of sleep medicine.

Research Interests

Cellular metabolism, mitochondrial biology and dysfunction in lung pathology; Aging

Publications

• Turner E, Roda G, Londono P, Herrera JA, Evans CM, Rangarajan S. Inhibition of Distal Glycolytic Enzymes Suppresses Fibroblast Activation without Deleterious Bioenergetic Effects. Am J Respir Cell Mol Biol. 2024 Jun;70(6):519-521. PubMed PMID: 38819122
• Rangarajan S. ANT1 and the SASP: Beyond the Bioenergetic Void. Am J Respir Cell Mol Biol. 2023 Nov;69(5):495-496. PubMed PMID: 37579125
• Rangarajan S. ANT1 and the SASP: Beyond the Bioenergetic Void. Am J Respir Cell Mol Biol. 2023 Nov;69(5):495-496. PubMed PMID: 37579125
• Rangarajan S, Locy ML, Chanda D, Kurundkar A, Kurundkar D, Larson-Casey JL, Londono P, Bagchi RA, Deskin B, Elajaili H, Nozik ES, Deshane JS, Zmijewski JW, Eickelberg O, Thannickal VJ. Mitochondrial uncoupling protein-2 reprograms metabolism to induce oxidative stress and myofibroblast senescence in age-associated lung fibrosis. Aging Cell. 2022 Sep;21(9):e13674. PubMed PMID: 35934931
• Rehan M, Kurundkar D, Kurundkar AR, Logsdon NJ, Smith SR, Chanda D, Bernard K, Sanders YY, Deshane JS, Dsouza KG, Rangarajan S, Zmijewski JW, Thannickal VJ. Restoration of SIRT3 gene expression by airway delivery resolves age-associated persistent lung fibrosis in mice. Nat Aging. 2021 Feb;1(2):205-217. PubMed PMID: 34386777
• Rehan M, Kurundkar D, Kurundkar AR, Logsdon NJ, Smith SR, Chanda D, Bernard K, Sanders YY, Deshane JS, Dsouza KG, Rangarajan S, Zmijewski JW, Thannickal VJ. Restoration of SIRT3 gene expression by airway delivery resolves age-associated persistent lung fibrosis in mice. Nat Aging. 2021 Feb;1(2):205-217. PubMed PMID: 34386777
• Locy ML, Rangarajan S, Yang S, Johnson MR, Bernard K, Kurundkar A, Bone NB, Zmijewski JW, Byun J, Pennathur S, Zhou Y, Thannickal VJ. Oxidative cross-linking of fibronectin confers protease resistance and inhibits cellular migration. Sci Signal. 2020 Aug 11;13(644). PubMed PMID: 32788339
• Rangarajan S, Thannickal VJ. Remember Me? The Bone Marrow in Pulmonary Fibrosis. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2019 Oct 15;200(8):959-960. PubMed PMID: 31206314
• Rangarajan S, Bone NB, Zmijewska AA, Jiang S, Park DW, Bernard K, Locy ML, Ravi S, Deshane J, Mannon RB, Abraham E, Darley-Usmar V, Thannickal VJ, Zmijewski JW. Metformin reverses established lung fibrosis in a bleomycin model. Nat Med. 2018 Aug;24(8):1121-1127. PubMed PMID: 29967351
• Rangarajan S, Lee JS. The TAMing of the Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Myofibroblast. One Step Closer?. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2018 Jun 1;197(11):1377-1378. PubMed PMID: 29664671

Professional Memberships

• American Thoracic Society, Member

Practice Locations

UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital (UCH)
12605 E. 16th Ave
Aurora, CO 80045
720-848-0000

Rocky Mountain Regional Veterans Administration Medical Center
1700 Wheeling St
Aurora, CO 80045
303-399-8020

Hospital Affiliation

• University of Colorado Hospital
• Veterans Affairs Medical Center

Specialty Information

Specialties

• Pulmonary Disease, Board Certification (2013)
• Critical Care Medicine, Board Certification (2014)
• Internal Medicine, Board Certification (2011)

Conditions & Treatments

• Lungs and Breathing
• Lungs and Breathing - Pulmonary Disorders
• Lungs and Breathing - Interstitial Lung Disease
• Critical Care